Wide Open
by Misty Reeyus
Summary: Yuri has a habit of coming in through windows.


Written for Tales of Santa 2016

* * *

Yuri is sitting on her bed.

Estelle comes to that realization within moments of entering her room, and she stands gaping in the doorway for all of ten seconds before shock morphs into delight. Yuri waves in greeting as his name bursts from Estelle's lips, and when she instantly sets upon him, arms flinging around his neck in an enthusiastic embrace, he chuckles and pats her on the arm twice before pulling away.

"Surprised?" Yuri asks, tossing her a smug grin.

Estelle playfully rolls her eyes and seats herself beside him on her mattress, lightly smacking his shoulder. "Of course I was! The guards didn't let me know you were here."

Yuri shrugs. "Yeah, well, I made sure none of them knew I was here."

Estelle pauses, scrunching her nose. "Wait, they didn't escort you? Then how did you get in here?"

Yuri quirks a brow at her, a wordless expression of _How do you think?_

Estelle finds the answer once she glances up and scans the room, her eyes zeroing in on the window that was definitely closed when she went downstairs for the council meeting but that now stares back at her with panels wide open.

"You came in through my window."

"Got it in one."

Estelle nearly shakes her head in disbelief, but upon further pondering, she can see how climbing up here would actually be an easy enough feat for someone as nimble as Yuri. The outer wall has no shortage of window ledges and other architectural outcroppings that would serve as adequate footholds; not to mention, patrols of that particular section of the outer wall are rather infrequent.

"What did I tell you about breaking and entering?" Estelle chides, even knowing full well Yuri won't listen. Considering some of the rules that she helped bend and break while they were on their journey together, she's not really one to talk, either.

Yuri just leans in, whispering conspiratorially, "Hey. I won't tell if you won't."

Estelle crosses her arms in an facsimile of strictness, belied by the traitorous quirk of her lips that she tries but fails to fight off. "You know, you could have just asked the guards. They'd let you in to see me."

"Why ask the guards when I can just ask you directly?" Yuri pushes himself off the bed and onto his feet, then turns back to proffer his hand down to her. "Come on, let's bail. I promised Ted and the others I'd sneak you out to see them again."

Honestly, that sounds like a lot of fun. But Estelle shakes her head, smiling sadly. "Yuri, I'm sorry, I can't right now. I'm really busy."

In the aftermath of their journey, Estelle's ideas for reform have been met with substantial bureaucratic resistance. Real change must be facilitated by solid, workable plans, and ever since she got back, she and Flynn and Ioder have been tirelessly deliberating with the Council. Even now that today's meeting is over, she still has a good deal of paperwork to sign off on.

Yuri sighs, his hand still outstretched. "Look, Flynn told me you've barely stepped outside this castle in the last two weeks. If that were me, I'd have gone insane already."

Fund arrangements and reconstruction diagrams _have_ actually started showing up in her dreams lately, and Estelle shudders at the memories before glancing back up at Yuri. His dark eyes twinkle at her as his grin shines warm and inviting, and Estelle feels the last of her meager resistance crumble entirely.

"I…suppose I could use an afternoon off." Giving in, Estelle grabs his hand, lets him pull her up onto her feet again—but when Yuri then rears forward, making as if to dash for the window, Estelle instantly catches him mid-step and yanks him back.

"Oh no," Estelle proclaims, wagging her finger in reprimand. "If I go out with you, we leave through the front door."

Yuri obviously gets put out about not being able to make his dramatic exit with her out the third-story window, but he agrees all the same.

* * *

Estelle is in the middle of doing the dishes when someone enters through her balcony.

She can hear their footsteps on the floor above, an irregular sequence of light taps: obviously attempting to be silent, but not fully succeeding. They're quiet, yes, enough so that Estelle almost didn't notice their steps amidst the thrum of the running sink and her own scrubbing, but not silent. At first, she might have even mistaken it for the scurry of a rat—she wouldn't have been too surprised, moving into any new home comes with certain risks—but now that the faucet is turned off and she's listening closely, she's sure it's a person.

Estelle quickly assesses the situation—she moved to this house in Halure only a few days ago, but she's already got a good enough sense of the building to visualize the space in her head. From the sounds of it, the intruder came in through her bedroom, and they must be rifling through her belongings or something because they're still in there.

Estelle left her sword leaned up against her nightstand. She won't be able to defend herself with that.

Glancing over at the stack of dishes she just washed, Estelle carefully snatches up the frying pan and, after judging its heft in her palms, performs an experimental swing.

It'll do.

Once armed and ready, Estelle tiptoes her way up the stairs and scans the second floor. All the doors are closed, bedroom included, and Estelle takes a moment to contemplate before going for the door to the neighboring guest room. She figures she can safely position herself there, and then she'll be able to determine the invader's movements and decide what to do next—

The hinges squeak slightly as the door opens and Estelle jumps in her skin, her heartbeat pounding in her ears as she ducks inside.

Estelle presses herself up against the wall, breath held and ears strained. She's half expecting to hear the frantic clutter of someone making a break for it, or maybe even the cautious advance of someone readying themself to attack, but for a while, all she can make out is some minor shuffling.

Just when Estelle is starting to think that the intruder didn't hear her after all, her bedroom door creaks open and footsteps resound.

They're _right there_ within seconds, and Estelle moves before she can think twice. She leaps out, slams down the frying pan as hard as she can, just barely misses her mark as the intruder manages to dodge at the last second—

"Gah! Estelle, hold on!"

The familiar voice gives her pause, and once she registers the face blinking back at her, Estelle makes an indignant noise and drops her pan-wielding arm harmlessly down to her side.

" _Yuri_!"

The object of her ire hazards a grin: cheeky, but with a nervous edge to it, like a little boy caught stealing candy. His gaze shifts back and forth between her face and the frying pan.

"Man, just what is it with you and trying to whop me over the head?"

"I thought you were a thief!" Estelle screeches in reprimand, her pan-free hand perching sternly on her hip. "What were you doing in my room anyway?"

Yuri has the good sense to look sheepish at that. "Waiting for you. It's fun to see the look on your face when you're not expecting me."

Estelle huffs. "I'm starting to think you actually _like_ getting hit over the head."

"Only if it's you," Yuri shoots back flippantly before shrugging, shifting on his feet. "Really though, I wanted to check up on you. Make sure you were settling into the new place alright."

His tone goes soft there, his mischievous demeanor settling into something more sincere, and Estelle knows she can't stay mad. He has a roundabout way of expressing it, but it's clear that Yuri cares.

"Yuri, I'm fine," Estelle assures. "It's a wonderful place. I mean, aside from the occasional home invader, apparently."

Yuri takes the barb in good stride, laughing and leaning back against the guestroom doorway. "Yeah? You like it here?"

"Oh, I love it! The air always smells like fresh flowers, and all my neighbors are so friendly." Estelle fiddles with the handle of the frying pan, sighing happily. "And it's just…beautiful here. Every time I walk outside, it's like I've stepped into a dream."

Yuri nods, smiling at the floor. "I'm glad. This place suits you."

Estelle bites her lip, flushing slightly. "You really think so?"

"Well, yeah. It's written all over your face. Whenever I come see you at the castle, you're always so stiff somehow. But right now, you seem relaxed. Free." Yuri glances up, cocking his head to lock eyes with her. "I like this better."

Heat rushes even faster to Estelle's cheeks, and she imagines she must be beet red now. Giggling, averting her gaze, she tucks a stray lock of hair behind her ear.

What a coincidence. She likes this better, too.

* * *

A quiet grunt resounds from the window behind her, and the very next moment, Estelle is whirled around: her sword in hand, rapidly unsheathed, the point of the blade aimed solidly at the trespasser's throat.

…At _Yuri's_ throat.

Estelle isn't even surprised anymore.

Yuri is, though. Once presented with the threat of the weapon, his eyes go wide and he reels back, nearly teetering off the windowsill. Estelle almost moves instinctively to grab him, but he manages to right himself first, avoiding the long fall down to the castle courtyard by catching himself in the window frame.

"Woahhh, okay!" Yuri cries, glancing cautiously at the sword before finally meeting her gaze. "Is this a bad time?"

Yuri is clearly no threat to her, so Estelle should probably sheathe her sword now. But, a mean little voice pipes up from the back of her mind, since he _did_ just try to sneak up on her again, he probably deserves to sweat a bit.

"How did you get here?" Estelle yanks out her best impersonation of an interrogator, schooling her face and keeping her voice level. "I had guards posted right below this window."

"Oh, those guys? Yeah, they might have gotten a little bit distracted when Repede ran off with their lunches." The lighthearted tone doesn't quite work with the frown on Yuri's face, though, and he stares again at the threateningly sharp point. "Geez, do you really want to keep me out that bad?"

Yuri actually sounds genuinely _hurt_ there, which means that the joke has gone too far, so Estelle withdraws, sheathing her sword and bowing her head in apology.

"It's not you," Estelle assures, as Yuri lets himself inside. "Well, I mean, it's partly you. It's you in that you've been able to bypass castle security."

"Oh." Yuri furrows his brow. "So does that make me a threat?"

Estelle shakes her head. "Of course _you_ aren't a threat. But if you could break in, then so could someone else who actually wants to hurt me. So I just asked them to take some extra precautions."

"Fair enough." Yuri grins, and Estelle relaxes to see him in good spirits again. "For what it's worth, though, I think you just proved that you can defend yourself just fine."

"I suppose. But it's not just me, it's everyone in living the castle. Ioder and Flynn, especially." The Emperor and the Commandant are far more important figureheads to the empire than a mere princess ever will be. "I'll have another talk with the guards. Hopefully, it won't be so easy for you to get up here next time."

Yuri quirks a brow. "You _want_ there to be a next time?"

Estelle shrugs. "If we have flaws in our security, better you be the one to get past them than an assassin. Then we can adjust accordingly."

" _Oh_ , so I'm your guinea pig now."

Estelle smirks. "It's not like you'd ever stop sneaking into the castle, even if I asked you to. I might as well make good use of that."

"I see," Yuri chuckles. "And suppose the knights _do_ catch me one of these days. What then?"

"What indeed," Estelle hums, tapping her cheek in consideration. "I suppose I'll have them bring you up here so I can deliver your punishment personally." With a playful smile, she puts her hand back on the hilt of her sword, makes as if to draw it again, and Yuri lets out an almost nervous-sounding laugh as he holds his hands up in surrender.

"Any chance I can reduce my sentence?" Yuri jokes, reaching one hand down into his bag to yank a package out. "I come bearing gifts. Fresh from the oven."

Estelle smiles at the familiar bakery box—shortcakes most likely, he knows how much she loves them—and instantly drops her battle stance.

"Brew me some tea as well," Estelle laughs, removing her hand from her sword to happily take the offering, "and you're off the hook."

* * *

At the castle, it's a game everyone's in on.

Depending on the day, the game could go either way. The guards involved all know that Yuri isn't a real threat, but they still put their all into capturing him because their prides are on the line. Yuri knows Estelle would never stand for any of the guards actually hurting him, but he still puts his all into evading them because that's just what he does. So sometimes, Estelle gets surprised by Yuri knocking at her window, or she hears from Flynn that Yuri managed to knock at his. Other times, a knight comes to her door with a resigned Yuri in tow, and Estelle "punishes" him by having him do simple chores for her.

It's a game, but it's not merely frivolous, nor is it an irresponsible waste of time. Estelle treats it as a legitimate method of improving their security, reorganizing guard systems so as to better deter intruders, while Yuri puts those systems to the test in his attempts to sneak in. Ultimately, there is a purpose behind the fun.

Still. It is fun.

In Halure, Estelle can't have that kind of fun with her security.

She may be the princess but she's not and hopefully never will be Empress, so she can't very well drag the knights over here with her when Ioder and Flynn need their protection far more. The trade-off is that there's less chance anyone would want to kill a mere princess in the first place, but still, better safe than sorry.

So her house in Halure gets a security update of its own. Estelle has the window panes reinforced and installs locks on all the balconies, and every night, she checks them all to make sure they're still shut tight. This night in particular is a stormy one, so Estelle keeps her eyes peeled for water leaks as she tests the kitchen, the living room, the guest room…

When she enters her bedroom, a familiar figure stands on the other side of the closed balcony window, and a telltale clink of metal against metal rings out amidst the low din of the downpour. Yuri's eyes meet hers through the fogged glass, and Estelle barks out a laugh of disbelief, shaking her head as she approaches.

"Yuri," Estelle sighs, pushing the window open, "were you trying to _pick my lock_?"

"Yep." Yuri shamelessly brandishes the lockpick in hand, smirking even as the rain matting his dark hair and clothes makes him look like a drenched rat. "Karol's been teaching me. Not that I've really picked up on it yet, but hey. Practice makes perfect, right?"

Estelle stares. "You're impossible."

"I'm also wet. And getting pretty cold, now that I think about it." Yuri makes a show of rubbing his shoulders and shivering. "Mind letting me in?"

Estelle rolls her eyes, but is unable to keep from smiling. "Hold on. I'll go get a towel."

She gets a spare bathrobe too, while she's at it, and although Yuri tries to protest, Estelle won't have any of it. She shoves the towel and robe into his arms and then him into the ensuite bathroom, and it isn't until he's shrugged out of his wet clothes and into the dry fleece that Estelle lets him out.

Yuri sets himself down on her mattress as he rubs the towel over his hair, and Estelle takes the opportunity to observe him. She was worried her robe might be too tight on him, and as is, it does look sort of small. The fabric at his collar ends at a point closer to his shoulder than to his neck, and that results in most of his chest being exposed; he sits with his legs spread as casually as ever but that makes the hemline rise to above his knees…

Oh. Oh gosh, Estelle is staring.

Maybe she really should have thought that whole bathrobe thing through a little more.

"H-honestly, Yuri!" Estelle blurts out, her tone accidentally coming out harsher than she intended as she attempts to distract herself from the fact that Yuri is near-naked on her bed. "You could have caught a cold out there."

"Eh." Yuri shrugs, letting the towel fall from his head to drape over his shoulders. "It'd have been worth it."

His gall never ceases to amaze.

Estelle huffs, her face still hot. "Am I really that fun to surprise?"

"Of course. Your reactions are great, _and_ you don't get nearly as uptight about it as Flynn does."

"Well, glad I could entertain you."

Yuri smiles apologetically in response to her miffed look, leaning back on his hands. "Don't you have fun doing this too, though?"

She'd be lying if she said she didn't, if she claimed that she didn't truly enjoy Yuri's boldness in his entrances and her own role in their ongoing game. She likes it, as reckless and improper as it is, and Estelle's never been able to lie to Yuri about what she likes.

"You're a bad influence," Estelle finally says, defeated, because it's as good as an admission. "Absolutely terrible."

Yuri looks all too proud of himself as he replies, "Good to hear."

* * *

The outer walls of Brave Vesperia's headquarters don't have many footholds.

That's the tricky part. The wall leading up to Estelle's castle bedroom is rife with ledges, and the balcony of her house in Halure is right next to a huge tree. Either of them would be much easier to free-climb than this—and even then, Estelle knows herself. She knows she's not as nimble as Yuri, nor is she as powerful with her jumps or as accurate with her aim.

But she also knows her upper body strength is nothing to sneeze at.

With that in mind, Estelle tugs firmly at the dangling end of the climbing rope in her hands, the other end of which has been fastened securely around the building's chimney. Judith agreed to help in her little scheme by setting this up before Estelle came, and perhaps it's cheating to have a spy on the inside, but seeing as Yuri often gets Repede to help him divert the guards during his own trespasses, she doesn't feel too guilty about it.

Besides, Estelle's not above playing dirty every now and then.

With the rope to help her, scaling the wall is a simple task, and she stops once she's hanging beside what she knows to be the correct second story window. It's open, as she expected—Estelle knows Yuri and unless he _really_ needs privacy, he always keeps his window open—and a quick peek inside informs her that he's lying on his bed, his back turned to her.

Perfect.

Estelle bites back a giggle as she swings herself inside, stepping onto the floor as quietly as she can. That's not very quiet at all, actually, and Yuri clearly notices, instantly rolling over, but Estelle pounces before he can do anything else. Yuri gives a frantic yelp, music to Estelle's ears, and he briefly flails his arms in a haphazard attempt to break free before Estelle catches both his wrists and slams them down onto the mattress.

"What the _hell_ —?!" Yuri starts to shout, but then his eyes finally meet hers, and he instantly cuts himself off. Estelle watches his expression flicker from hostile to confused to flabbergasted, and as he apparently settles on that last one for a good while, she throws her head back and laughs out loud.

Yuri is pinned beneath her, eyes wide and mouth agape, positively wordless with shock.

 _Oh_ , she feels vindicated.

"Gotcha," Estelle singsongs, smug with success. Yuri continues to stare, his mouth now alternating between opening and closing, as if he wants to say something but can't quite figure out what.

"…You came in through my window," he finally manages, and Estelle nods proudly. He takes another few seconds to register that before his expression shifts from flabbergasted to reluctantly impressed. "Remind me, what was that you told me about breaking and entering?"

Estelle just beams down at him, echoing, "I won't tell if you won't."

Yuri bursts helplessly into chuckles at that, slipping one hand out from her loosened grip to put his palm over his forehead. "Okay," he gasps, still shaking with laughter. "Alright, I get it, you've made your point. I'm a bad influence."

"The best one I could have ever asked for," Estelle coos, and playfully paps his cheeks once before rolling off his body, allowing him to sit up.

The merciless noogie Yuri pulls her into afterwards is entirely worth it.


End file.
